07/13, 7:11am

Solve problems by turning to iCloud from any computer

Previously on Pointers... We did a piece on getting more out of Pages on your Mac and iOS devices. Now it's time to do the same on iCloud.com in part because this is an answer to a reader's problem. G. Stewart Baird emailed saying that needs to hang on to older versions of Pages until he knows that features he needs have been restored but he's got at least one document that's in the newer format.

04/03, 9:20am

Find that email even if it's not still on your iPhone

Searching for old emails on your iPhone used to be enough of a pain that you just didn't bother. Worse, it was also regularly pointless, as the search would take forever and often fail to find something you knew was there. It was bad enough that not only did you get into the habit of waiting until you were back at your Mac or occasionally re-forwarding mails so they'd be at the top of your inbox, you also forgot that things change. Things have changed. Since iOS 7, search is immensely improved. It's still not perfect, but there are ways to work around its remaining issues. This Pointers tutorial is specifically about using Apple Mail with an iCloud account.

03/28, 9:10am

Solid, well-made app backs up and copies your hard drives

Nothing digital really exists unless it exists twice. For all that we have these great interconnected cloud services, there is still a hard drive holding on to our data somewhere and all hard drives fail eventually. They're like politicians in that respect: they go on until they fail. Carbon Copy Cloner is a way to make failures annoying rather than fatal to your work. It backs up any or all of your files and it also optionally creates a separate and bootable hard drive.

01/06, 2:08am

Dropzone and Control Room intended to add value for existing, new customers

Wacom, makers of digital input tablets and other devices for artists, have announced two new free cloud-based services for their customers. These two services, which allow content and device settings to be stored and shared across platforms, are the first in a series of services planned for release over the course of 2015. The Dropzone service allows an initial 2GB of free storage, while the Control Room service lets existing users upload device settings so that they can retrieve the settings when using the device on a different platform.

11/13, 5:20pm

Cross-device copying and pasting, tablet settings now accessible though the cloud

Graphics tablet and stylus manufacturer Wacom announced the launch of its cloud-based services today, Dropzone and Control Room. The new pieces of cloud software expand on the ability of Wacom owners to access settings and photos from any location with an Internet connection, across OS X, Windows and iOS operating systems.

09/02, 9:30pm

Specifications on DDR4 coming September 15, new SSDs coming later this year

Kingston's enthusiast brand HyperX brought a number of products to Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle this year, including the Cloud headset and Skyn mouse pads announced earlier this year, and the brand's upcoming entries in DDR4 memory. HyperX showed off some of the first versions of memory for Intel's X99 chipset and Haswell Extreme Edition processor, branded for its Predator line.

06/17, 5:53pm

Technology from Y-Combinator backed startup to be used for enterprise applications

Cloud file storage company Boxannounced yesterday that it is acquiring file streaming startup Streem for an undisclosed sum. The technology behind the cloud-to-desktop streaming service will be integrated into Box's cloud offerings. Streem's four-person team will fold into the Box team to work on content management solutions for enterprise.

03/02, 11:50am

Beta version uses Dropbox to backup game progress and settings

Razer's Game Booster has been gained another feature in its recent beta release, bringing cloud-saving capabilities to the software for game save files and settings as the company branches out further. The new Game Save Manager currently supports over 2,000 titles with more being added.

02/09, 3:06pm

Kickstarter for alternative cloud service and device combo exceeds its campaign goal

San Franciscan siblings Karisma and Sam Nagar have successfully crowd-funded their cloud device and service Pixeom, with eleven days to spare in its Kickstarter campaign. The Pixeom Exchange Device is a prototype that offers an alternative to corporate cloud services that require access to its users' information to use its digital space. Aiming to facilitate a new type of data exchange for Internet users, Pixeom functions by centralizing one's own cloud network in a personal home device, as opposed to a large, remote data center. All of a user's cloud service needs will be supported within the device at a one-time purchasing cost, facilitating storage, social networking, and online auctioning functions that focus on privacy.

12/12, 12:24pm

Dropbox for Business to be offered to Dell enterprise customers

Dell has announced a number of new partnerships it has formed with other companies at its Dell World event in Austin today. The computer producer revealed updates to the Dell Cloud Partner Program, an agreement with Red Hat over OpenStack, and that it would start offering Dropbox for Business through its enterprise sales, among other announcements.

12/03, 8:48am

Virtual-machine service completes beta testing

Google has finally completed invite-only beta trials of its Compute Engine service, bringing lower prices and new features for the wider rollout. As part of the Google Cloud Platform, which competes with Windows Azure and Amazon EC2 offerings, the service provides access to virtual machines that can be scaled to suit a wide range of applications.

07/26, 4:17pm

Overseas companies react to NSA program

The National Security Agency's PRISM surveillance program is reportedly driving business away from cloud service providers based in the US, according to a survey published by Cloud Security Alliance. The industry organization found that more than half of non-US respondents claimed to be less likely to use US-based cloud providers due to the surveillance revelations, while 10 percent claimed to have already canceled an existing project plan to use US-based cloud providers.

06/26, 10:29am

Dropbox improves software performance

Dropbox announced yesterday that its cloud storage software app for the iPhone and iPad received an update. Dropbox allows users store photos, documents and videos on its cloud platform and share them easily between other users, or other devices. Available on the iTunes Store, v2.3 includes the addition of link sharing; a swipe function to quickly share, move, delete or 'favorite' an item; improved software performance, and a new ability to select and share multiple photos with other users. Dropbox provides 2GB of space free upon signup, an additional 3GB when users upload photo and video files, and 500MB per referral. Upgrades start at 100GB for $10 a month.

03/21, 6:54pm

Around 55 percent of those surveyed said they don't use cloud services

Marketing and analysis firm Strategy Analytics has released the results of a new study into the use of cloud media storage services, noting that Apple's iCloud and iTunes Match have captured the majority share at 27 percent (combined) US marketshare and revealing a tighter-than-expected horse race between Dropbox and Amazon Cloud Drive for second most-popular cloud media service.

01/25, 9:57am

Files synced between devices

BitTorrent has announced plans to offer a new service that utilizes peer-to-peer technology to synchronize personal files between multiple devices. The project, which is still in its pre-Alpha testing stage, aims to directly synchronize content without relying on cloud caching, accordingto details posted by GigaOM.

01/07, 5:01am

Integrated Wi-Fi repeaters extend range of camera coverage

D-Link has updated its Cloud Camera range with two new wireless network imaging devices. The Cloud Camera 1050 and Cloud Camera 1150 add a number of new features to the wireless surveillance system, including a three-step Wi-Fi Protected Setup scheme, and audio-detection with image alerts based on sounds heard by the cameras.

12/13, 2:38pm

Peer-to-peer music acquisition sparks speculation

Popular cloud-storage provider Dropbox moved to further differentiate itself from competitors today, acquiring Seattle-based music streaming service Audiogalaxy. While Dropbox has not yet commented on the acquisition, Audiogalaxy, in announcing the deal, said its team was excited to bring "great new experiences" to Dropbox's more than 100 million users. The peer-to-peer streaming service is no longer accepting new users, but its current users can continue to use the personal streaming features of the service.

11/26, 5:25pm

Introduces Amazon Glacier-style backup system

Google has updated the pricing for its cloud computing services, with the new costs representing a drop of about 20 percent compared to what they were previously. The changes come in just before Amazon holds its re:Invent conference in Las Vegas, a developer event focusing on Amazon Web Services and cloud computing.

11/13, 10:37pm

Cloud technology project seeking engineers, designers

Former OS X chief Bertrand Serlet's new venture UpThere has shed a little more light about itself with a website redesign that calls for new hires of engineers and designers. The company says it is looking for "creative and talented engineers, product managers, and college interns with experience in technologies like C/C++, Objective-C, Node.is, and JavaScript." In addition to Serlet, former Apple employees Roger Bodamer and Chris Bourdon are also involved in the startup, which is focused on "building out the future of the cloud."

11/06, 6:35pm

Today drive maker LaCie announced an all-new network storage solution that connects an entire family group to music, movie and photo files. The LaCie CloudBox stores files in a single location, so family members can easily share them with friends and access them from anywhere on the Internet on any device.

08/21, 7:22am

Panasonic brings the connected home to life through the cloud, NFC

Panasonic has expanded its Smart Home Appliance range with the arrival of full cloud support, NFC functionality and a new Android app [Free, Google Play. The range of connected appliances will include air conditioners, refrigerators, kitchen appliances and healthcare products. These join will join its NFC-enabled microwave oven and rice cooker that can have programming instructions for recipes found online automatically enabled with the swipe of a NFC-enabled Android smartphone.

05/09, 11:00am

Local server's storage easily converted to cloud

Leveraging the popular home and SOHO Pogoplug network and internet storage system, Pogo is unveiling Pogoplug Team. Pogoplug Team is a cloud enabled server system designed to be installed on existing IT assets, creating a private cloud for group access to files on any computer, web browser, mobile device, or tablet.

04/30, 11:45pm

Creates searchable library of content

Jolicloud, described as a "social organizing tool," is now available as a free app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. The service offers to index everything a user has created, linked to, liked or received on several of the top social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, Picasa, Flickr, Instagram and other services. The indexing in effect creates a personal library that is more easily searchable and centrally located than attempting to track down a URL users might have linked to in the past.

04/24, 8:45pm

Code examples, API, guidelines provided for devs

Google Drive wasn't Google's only release today. With less fanfare than the cloud storage announcement, Google also released the Google Drive Software Development Kid (SDK). The SDK allows developers to implement Google Drive integration and further allows an application to take advantage of Google's sharing, identity management, and storage.

04/24, 5:50am

Google Drive launch imminent

Google’s long-rumored Google Drive cloud-based storage service dubbed is tipped by insiders to arrive as soon as today. Hints that a launch may be imminent include an increase in Google Docs default storage from 1GB to 5GB that is starting to roll out, as well as a direct reference to the yet to be launched service in Google support materials.

04/11, 5:10pm

Additional file types supported also

CloudOn, a free iPad productivity tool that offers a cloud-hosted version of Microsoft Office has updated to version 2.0.3, adding support for cloud storage service Box as well as Dropbox. The company has also expanded the number of supported file types by integrating a PDF reader and file viewer that opens almost any file type, and have also built in e-mailing files to colleagues. The program relies on services like Dropbox and Box to handle file management.

02/09, 4:40am

Google to take on Dropbox in cloud-storage market

Google is said to be close to launching its own cloud-storage service that is set to compete with Dropbox. The tip-off was offered to the Wall Street Journal, which says that it has talked to ‘people familiar with the matter.’ The long-rumored service dubbed 'Drive' will offer users the ability to store all types of files and make the sharing of those files simple by allowing them to stream a video directly from the cloud, for example.

01/04, 6:55pm

Faster uploading, browsing also added

SugarSync has updated its apps for both iOS and Android devices. The new releases provide enhanced backup, synchronization and access of photos, videos and files across multiple platforms (free, Android Market, App Store). SugarSync offers the apps in conjunction with its cloud storage service.

12/05, 6:35pm

Latest company to team with cloud storage provider

HP has announced a program that will provide free Box cloud storage for customers who purchase select Compaq pro-level desktop machines. The computer maker appears to be expanding its collaboration with the cloud service provider, following a similar promotion that brought 50GB in free storage for the TouchPad tablet.

10/18, 11:15am

MG4120, MG3120, MG2120 better plain paper printing

Canon U.S.A. has announced three new PIXMA printers, MG4120 Wireless Photo All-In-One (AIO), MG3120 Wireless Photo All-In-One, and the MG2120 Photo All-In-One printers. The MG4120 and MG3120 use 802.11n Wi-Fi for networking, while the MG2120 uses a USB connection. All three printers use Canon's ChromaLife 100 ink system, which uses one black and one color cartridge. Canon claims the new ink system produces better yellows and reds, especially on plain paper. Each of the new printers can produce a full color 4x6 photo in approximately 44 seconds. The MG4120 and MG3120 also can duplex automatically.

09/14, 8:30pm

Dropbox, iCloud compatibility, Blowfish encryption

Portland, Oregon-based mSeven Software has announced the launch of mSecure 3.0, a cross-platform password and security manager for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android systems. The new version offers 17 pre-categorized groups for passwords, as well as the ability to generate new custom groups and favorites for fast access. It also features improved data security when syncing with "cloud"-based services such as Dropbox and (when available) iCloud.

06/07, 4:00pm

SkyDrive capabilities arriving in Mango update

Microsoft has provided yet another preview of the upcoming Windows Phone 7 update, referred to as Mango. Following Apple's iCloud announcement, Microsoft has quickly highlighted the cloud-based features that will be available on WP7 handsets. SkyDrive is touted as a competitive option, enabling devices to automatically upload photos to cloud storage.

06/02, 12:45am

Sterne Agee reinterates 'Buy' rating at news

Back in April, Swedish firm Xcerion changed the name of their cloud-storage service (and its website) from iCloud to CloudMe, with reports that Apple had bought the domain from the company for a rumored $4.5 million as part of the buildup to Monday's expected announcement of iCloud services. Today, the administrative records in the WHOIS database confirm that Apple has taken control of the name, even though it currently still redirects to Xcerion's CloudMe service.

04/29, 11:25am

Issues credit to customers, promises changes

Amazon has offered an apology and detailed explanation for the disruption of its cloud storage service last week. During an operation to increase network capacity, traffic to the Elastic Block Storage system was incorrectly rerouted to a slower secondary backup network. The service outage affected a number of websites, including Foursquare and Reddit.

04/08, 2:00am

Works with all platforms, top browsers, ad-free

A company called TransMedia is offering a free toolbar and "cloud OS" called Glide for major Mac, Windows and Linux browsers -- as well as all significant mobile OSes -- that offers users the possibility of going further with cloud storage and management than most other services offer, including a range of web applications and services that make the browser the center of the computing experience.

01/06, 1:00pm

Cloud library accessible from Mac, PC, iPhone, web

RealNetworks is using CES 2011 to preview a new cloud-centric media library, Unifi. The service tracks all a user's media, from local devices, social media and into the cloud. It catalogs and organizes the content into a single library, supporting search limiters such as media types, devices or tags. The library will track mobile devices, networked data and will eventually track media on Internet TVs and game consoles.

12/15, 7:20pm

Sidebar gets makeover, attachment menu option

Evernote, an cloud-based document-store-and-sync system, has upgraded its Mac application to v2, bringing the ability to share notebooks either publicly (even to non-Evernote users) or to groups and individuals. Users can link public notebooks to their account so that it is automatically updated, and Evernote Premium members can allow others editing privileges on the notebook in question, making collaborative work easy.

09/24, 11:30pm

Manages, opens files from cloud services

SMEStorage will soon be releasing an update to their existing iSMEStorage app for iPhone and iPad, to be renamed CloudDav after the technology it uses, which will enable iPad iWork users to edit and save documents stored on a variety of third-party "cloud" storage services, even if they are not normally WebDAV enabled.

07/20, 7:25pm

Operation to begin immediately after completion

Apple expects its North Carolina data center to be completed by the end of the year, according to comments made by executives during the company's Q3 financial conference call. CFO Peter Oppenheimer suggests the project is "on schedule" and the complex will be fully operational as soon as construction is complete.

05/05, 11:05pm

Service: mobile, 3rd party apps, developer support

Internet storage and file synchronization provider Dropbox has announced a new service, Dropbox Anywhere. The service aims to equip third-party apps for iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry -- arriving later in the Summer -- with the new Dropbox mobile API. The new API will enable developers to create apps that can access the contents of users' Dropbox accounts and keep the data in sync across multiple devices.

05/03, 10:50pm

GUI now integrates pop-overs, document export

Dropbox has released an update to its iPhone app, which is now available as a universal download with an iPad-native interface. The iPad customization features a split-screen layout with a My Dropbox toolbar on the left column and document previews on the right side. The interface also features pop-over menus for easy access to settings, sharing options and favorites, among other features.

02/22, 6:50pm

Facility built upon 225 acres of land

An aerial video, captured from a helicopter, allegedly shows Apple's new data-center located on 225 acres of land in Maiden, North Carolina. The enormous building is said to cover 500,000 square feet of floor space, over four times the area available in the company's server farm in Newark, California. The project is said to have cost over $1 billion.

11/09, 10:50pm

5.0 adds drag-and-drop capabilities

Servoy has launched an update to its hybrid SaaS software, Servoy. Version 5.0 can run on dedicated servers or in a cloud-based operation, with the ability to handle both SaaS and Back hybrid applications from a single codebase. It offers real-time clustering and support for load balancing, including geographic load balancing and fail over.